The Sun. — London, England, 1810-02-02 00:00:00

ing to eornpensation.paid forthe abolition of afiee fees in the Customs in Ireland. Granted. THANKS TO LORD WE I.I.I,NGTON. The CilAtipELLOit Of the EXCHEQUER, in rising to move for the Thanks ot,the House to Lord Wel lington, for his skill and valour, so eminently dis played in the battle of .Talavera, could not refrain from expressing regret at the symptoms of opposi tion which -were manifested in that House, and - which hid been previ , usly manifested elsewhere. He thought it could not be denied that the action for which he was about to move their Thanks, was one of the most splendid th-it bad ever graced , our annals. Whea the numbers of the enemy with which we had to contend were taken into consider ation, as als6 the state they were in, for unlike the poor Spaniards over whom the French had ftp quently triumphed, naked and undisciplined, the force opposed to our army was composed of veteran troops, who were the boast - of our enemy ; when these circumstances were considered, the merits of the action Would, he trusted, - appear in a, proper light. He wished them to bear in mind the ad-, vantages that must necessarily result from it to this country, as they must be aware how essential it was to our interest to maintain the reputation of our ar mies, both for valour 'in the field. and for skill and wisdom in the Commanders. When they consi dered the policy and the importance - ot that, and the justice of rewarding bravery, he toped the House. would not hesitate to giire the honourable testimony • of applause due to military ex.cellence. He wished those who might feel disposed to oppose the motion, to consider if their hostility were not in some mea sure the offspring_of party differeeces. That such feelings might riot influence the vote they were to Ove, he was anxions'to abstain from. touching on any topic on which a 'difference of opinion might . exipt. He would for the' present leave the policy of the Expedition to Spain and Portugal entirely out of the and only call their attention to the battle of Talat'era, in which the skill of the Ge neral was only equalled by the - valour-of the, troops, and the valour of the troops by the skill of the Ge neral. In doing thiS,' he "wished it distinctly to be 'understood, that he did not shrink from an inquiry into the policy and condW Of that expedition. He did not wish that to be held from, discussion. At any time lie would be prepared to defend the con duct and even to maintain the utility of ,that cam-, pa gn. The circumstances of it werd e so recent that it was hardly necessary to state them anew. After expe ling the, enemy from Portugal, • Lord Wellington - marched from the. North of Portugal to the Tagus. He arrived there op the 11th or 12th of June, and on the 27th broke up to go to Placen tia. He formed a junction with the force under Cuesta, with whom hd had several conferences, and a plan of operations - was then concerted. It was proposed not only to drive the enemy beyond the Alberehr, but to expel the French ; by a combined eparation, from the South of Spain, while Veriegas, whose- force was inclu(!ed in the plan, was to ,push on toe ards Madrid. This plan unfortunately was never cairted into execution ; its failure, however, . could not be ascribed ,to any misconduct on the part of Lord Wellington. He now came to speak of the battle of Talavera. On the night of the 27th July, the French attacked the division under the command of Gen. Hill. The manner in which that attack was repelled, and the enemy repulsed at the point of the bayonet, was well known, as was the subse quent defeat of the enemy, and must be fresh in the • memory of every one. Every part of the operation was charatterised by corresponding skill and valour ; and it ended gleriously, ended in a repulse, and in a complete victory over an 'enemy double the- num ber of our army. The Spaniards aflbrded little as sistance in this battle. Whatever might be theught of it here, no doubt was entertained as to its merits in Spain., Portugal, and he might add in France.— It was an achieVement that- called for the best Thanks of the House, and he wished an Hon. Gent. opposite, who was not then in his place, would con, sider how well he' might exert that eloquence of which he was in so eminent a Ogree possessed, by doing justice to the skill and -valour displayed in . that action, atictcalling on the House for an unani mous vote of thanks to, the gallant officer by whom it was achieved. He would wish to reed' to his mind what be so ably , urged, when moving for thanks to t beGeneral who gained the battle of Maida, when he so deeply impressed . on the House the im portance of payirg a proper degree of attention to the encouragement of military merit. ,That merit, such as was shewn in - the plains of Abide, had been exemplified in the fields of Talavera. The t o ac tions were similar, and hehoped that Hon. Gentle man, fedi ngth it circumstance as he did, would con cur in calling on the House for that honour which was so well deserved by the conqueror of Talavera. The Right HonouralJle- Gentleman concluded by moving,' " That the Thanks of that House should be given to Lord - Wellington for the distinguished ability displayed by him on the 27th and 23th of I uly, 1809, in the glorious battle bi t a lavera, which terminated in the iepulse and defeat of a supe rior enemy ." Lord MILTON could not concur. with the Right Hon. Gentleman opposite; he could not consider this as an insulated question, and would therefore move an amendment. He did not wish to ai tici.. pate the discussion on the policy of the late Expedi tion, but he could not look on the present motion but as intimately connected with the events of the campaign. He was aware how necessary it was to biaintain the reputation of the army, but. he could not think the line of condua pursued by the Hon. Gentleman, likely to produce the wished-for effeal.,. They had got into a bad habit of voting their Thanks OD all OteLiSiOl;S, till they had in a gi% at degree lost their value. It was impossible for any one to con template the events of the late campaign and not . think them disastrous. It was not enough to entitle Lord Wellington to thanks that he had extricated his army from a most desperate situation by his skill and valour.: He ought never to have placed it in such a situation. Ail Administrations were fond of thanking their Generals, thinking the praises . be stowed on them reflected lustre on themselves. He . did not know that the present motion originatied in such a feeling, but well be knew that similar ma cons emanated from such' a principle on former oc ea•tons. He admitted that the battle of Talavera As: a s glorious, he acknow:edged time of the Com-. inlander and the valour of the troops; but he thought a General was not entitled to the Thanks of that House merely for behaving well on the field of battle. ..oied Thanks lot the battle of. Nihnira with ;LI his heart, but had he thoughtlhe Thanks .voted for the.valour displayeLly Sir A. 'Wellesley in that 'battle would have causod the battle of •Talavera (from a thirst for persOnal glory), he would have 'paused beforelte gaVe his vote. 'Lord 'Wellington appeared to him to have fOught merely for his peer age. Did the Right Hon, Gentleman opposite wish them toleave out of the question that the result of the battle had caused_ Lord _Wellington -to Tetreat,. leaving 3500 sick behind, 1500 of whom fell into the hands of the enemy ? - 'Did he wish theM not to rememtkr that that army had never since re sumed active operations ? Not one dispatch from Lord Wellington had been published since that of the 21st of August, dated Truxillo. Did that cir cumstance arise from•htS having sent note, or were the dispatches he sent of such a nature that it was thought proper not to communicate them to•the public ) An air of mystery hung over the whole campaign. Lord • Wellington was not an inadive man, and how his having lain dormant so long could be satisfa6oFily accounted for he was at a losS to imagine. After a few further remarks the Noble Lord concluded, moving an amendment to the fol lowing etfeat-- " That the whole of the original motion be taken away after the word " That," for the purpose_ of adding " the Thanks of this House be given to the officers and soldiers un. der Lord Wellington, for the undaunted courage they dis— played in repulsing the attack of the enemy at Talavera, on the 27th and zBth of July 1809 ; bttt .while they acknow. ledge their discipline and valour, they,,have to regret that Lord Wellington could derive no advantages from their prowess, being compelled a few days afterwards to rtkioss the Tagus, at the bridge of Arzobispo, leaving 3,i00 sick and wounded behi:ul, lioo of whom tell into the fundsof the enemy, and finally to retteat upon Portugal." Mr. VERNON thought if the question had been meiely as to valour and skill, little difference of opinion would have been expreised.. But it was not sufficient to' entitle Lord Wellington tq the Thanks of that House, to say he had displayed great skill abd valour at Talavera, as be might be asked what business had he at Talavera ? When Cuesta declined taking his part in the proposed operation, Lord Wellington should hate said, "- I have done my duty, the moment is lost, through your thiling to co-operai . e with me in a proper man ner, and I illiVellOW only to, provide for the- safety of my own army." He had never those sanguine hopesof the Spzin;sh cause that many, seemed to indulge, and which he thought must have proceed ed rather from desire than from sober reason. When we considered the resources of Spain opposed to those of France, we had no reason to. believe their Religion, King, or Constitution, would, ani mate the Spaniards 'so, far as to oppose the vie...t.s of Buonaparte with success.' He did not wish Ministers to abandon Spain in the extremity . . of her distress ; he would have them Send arms, cloaths ; „ Money, nay, even troops, provided they could. at on the coast, or maintain a constant communication with the fleet, but they ought not be sent into- the country to depend for hu bsisse nee ,on a Government without carntroul, and at with au, army that could boast no soldiers. Mr. M. MONTAGUE defended Ministers, and yin . - dicated Lord WellingtOn from the charges pre-. ferred against him., It would be unjust to refuse to Lord Wellington those Thanks which had .otter been given on occasions greatly inferior,, to the brilliatA affair at Talavera. The effeas of the Expedition, he.contended, would be beneficial to Englimd. lt would have been well had no party fee,ina opposed the present motion. Such conduct would not be grateful to the country, and Gentlemen, he firmly believed, would find themselves deceived if*tbey expedted thus, to ingratiate themselves with the people. Mr. LEMON . supported the amendment. General TA.aLnToti opposed the motion of .the Right Hon. Gentleman, .and trusted he should be allowed to offer a few words in his own defence, for every day's. experience .skewed the necessity of public trial. The Hon. General then proceeded to lament the 'state of inaelion to, which. he :was condemned, which he decllred was not his own fault, but was to be attribute 4 to Ministers, who, were not disposed to employ him. Though his. ' tottering limbs and trembling frame would not carry him to foreign service, yet he was prepared to defend the soil of Great Britain. with the rait.drop of his blood - . Whatever opinions he might offer, they were die - tater:l solely by the love of his country; and therefore,' as a mililary . man, he was bound, ott military topies, to declare, his sentiments. With respect to the march of Lord Wellington from the confines of Portugal, to the South of ',Spain, he went Over all his former observations, condemning his Lordship for having quitted- the position he had occupied, to encounter, without the necessary sup-. plie,, such a manmuvering army as the French, and contended that though the enemy were repulsed, no. victory held been obtained. fleAlescribA the dis patch of Lord Wellington as vain-glorious, partial,„ and incorrect.—[Here he was called to order, by Mr. Montague.)—He could not ',admit that the battle of Talavera was to be compared, as some. writers had stated, with the battles of Agincourt, Cressy,. and Poictiers. By the battle of Agincourt a Crown was gained; by that of Talavera a Crown . was lost. After the former, did the King leave his wounded to be made prisoners, or extricate himself from peril by flight? He then proceeded to make a comparibon between the actions of the Duke'. of Marlborough, and those of Lord Wellington ; and concluded ray' saying, that though he could not. consent to thank the Noble Lord, he was willing to'do every justice to the bravery and valour of the officers and army under hii command, whose courage had never been exceeded in the military .history of the country. 'Lord CASTLEREAGH observed, thatif the Hon. General really felt he was discharging his public dpty, it-was not, in his opinion, to be effected by giving _'countenance to the course of proceeding which was attempted to be fastened on the House, by-an endeavour to convert the Vote of Thanks into a direct and marked censure upon the Noble Lord.. Though he protested against the - principle which Was now sought to be established, he should do great injustice to the Noble Lord if he did not state the grounds - upon which his conduct was entitled to. the Thanks of the House. -In looking back to the progress of the campaign, he should pass over those subjects which would, more properly come under diseussion'at some future period. He 'should , only detail what would do honour to his character. Lord I Wellineou, in the middle of April, with an army 'of 25.,000 Man, was sent to defend Portugal. _At that time the Northern Provinces of Spain mere iu th,;o9'ssesi,ion - of the enemy under Ney and Sot,lt, and - were menaced by 'Vidor. The-Noble Lord left the Taps in the posse4siOn of General Mai:kw). zie, with a s h Out twelve thonsand men, and Marched on to Spain: It would 13.2 recolleded that ; the tem.: per of the country at that time would not permit , .his remaining inactive. The,instruaions which the Noble 'Lord received was to relieve Portugal. , What WartlS - situation 'after he • left MrantOs to join Cue,sta, with whorn'heNwas to co-operate ? At that time he '1)1 received inform . anon ihat thv bade of Aipein had been f6ught,. and ke.ponceived that it was the precise momat when - the Oman's might free themselves (or antearThake an attempt of that nature) from the yoke of France. In that situation of - things, the Noble Lurd imagined that he was juAifiedin rendering that assistauat which his in strudions anthorisoi tcido; eoniiStent with the safety of Portugal, , which was. The • first Objeet.— Cuesta was expressly desired notto : go furtlitr than. the Alherche, until he knew what uete the inten- tions of the French army in thtt North of The relief of Ferrol was owing to the movrnieirts Nf the Noble Lord, and it was entirely.owing to those circtitrislances that we had at this motpent a fleet ill the harbour of - Cadiz. Sy these rridveme the enemy were competled to draw all their forces frtim the North of Spain in order to meet him.at.Tala _ volt, The avack was begun on . the -23 d of July, and he knew that if Cuesta: did 'not him that , . General Vanegass, was to move on to Argandti with a corps of 2.5,000 men ; instead.of marching to that point, Vanegas took post at Toledo, whither Sebas tiani was also posted. It had heeii said tha - t. SOnit's army had woved doN,vn to the Tegns to the arnotiht; in point of numbers, of ,31,000 ; that was an error, fur there never was more :than 4000; the army . , which adually was engaged there k'ere the cone= billed forces of Ney, of Matier, and anothei Gene ral, whose naine.he did not. recollea. The Noble Lord insisted that there: was nothing which could be stated with respeCt to the campaign that could deprive Lord 'Wellington of his Well - earned 'botiotirs at the battle of Talavera, or of that character whiCh he possessed for great military prudence, and for au dacity and boldness in action. A battle more dig- . tii3guished for its brilliancy. could not be formd in history. The battle: of Agincourt, to which the Honourable General had compared it, this House knew little of, and therefore could not sufficiently appreciate its merits. It would require- •something mere of ingenuity. than, the Hon." Geueral had dis played in his reasoning before he could strip the Noble Lord of one of his laurels. A battle so brilliant - had hardlY occurred, in which two armies; after fighting , bravely, remained for two days in sight of each other. - lt, was a battle fought: with Unequal numbers. if my Lord Wellington court-, ed - it, then indeed' his condo& might furnish subject for - comment ; but he 'had not courted it. The aaion was commenced ,by. the enemy. Instead of there being a force to cu-operate - of 45,00'0 Spaniards ) Only 26,600 appeared' to assist. The Noble Lord then descanted; in' eloquent 'lan guage, on the progress of the contest: No inter mission:had taken place in the struggle- 7 -A was con tinued through the day, and when night set in, a shorn interval only was afforded for repose, from which the arthies rose to.renew .the 'combat ; when the soldiers of the opposing armies met, by , the brook; on the ensuing morning to drink, they shook hands, as became - valiant men;' and then renewed the desperate conflict. This meeting was an ear nest that if our brave troops fell into the hands of the enemy, they would meet good treatment, and be respected by them. To say that 'such 'a Conflia was not' calculated. to call forth the \feelings of the House, and' that the decision of-such a battle,' ho.;• nourable to the valour and skill of Lord Wellington, was - not to be tnet with rewards, was but an ill requital for deeds .of military bravery. The Noble ' Lord deprecated any such ideas—he 'deprecated •any • attempt to lessen, that military ardour which• had placed the'charaaer of this nation in so high a point of view, and had rendered us a formidable opponent' to France. With respett to . the loss, he should on a future day call for the rettlin, when . it would' found, that the battle had been obtained with very little loss, the numbers killed and wounded (iiclud-' ing the 1500 sick which had Hien into the hands of the French) did not exceed 6000 rriert Taking into consideration the whole of the merits of Lora - Wellington ; it appeared that he had matched his army a most difficult route from Coimbra to Bada joz, a distance of upwards of twelve hundred miles, with little loss. Soult lost one-third 'of his army, and didnot save a single piece of cannon. The No ble Lord had - no disposition, although he was aware that responsibility attached to Member's higher in office, of taking it on himself. The Military "cha racter of my Lord Wellington was not to be esti mated alone by the' battle , of Talavera ; : he 'had fought battles, and successful ones, in -all parts of the world„at Assaye, at Roleia, at Vimeira, gene , - rally'againstsuperior , numbers. Whenever he had met the enemy, he had defeated them.' He•was still in the vigour of life, - and his country might ex peat .he would • add to his victories. The Noble Lord concluded a very eloquent speech (which our limits will not allow us to detail) amidst the univer sal cheers of the House. Mr. WHITBREAD congratulated the House that Lord Wellington had found sucli,an eloquent sup- Toner in the person of the Noble Lord. It was impossible, however, not to lament the British ` blood which had been sacrificed by the incapacity •and folly of Ministers. The Hon. Gentleman con tended that Lord Wellington had strewn want of judgment in not taking care to provide for the sus tenance of the army before he ventnred,to march. 'lt was that care which' rendered the armies of Boo :naPai te so - conspicuous. • With respe6i to the battle , ofTalaera, that, Mr. W. maintained, he was juslitied in considering { as " a ,surprise upon the Noble Lard., ;He referred to various passages in the dispatches, in which it was evident that Lord Wellington • had not :reconnoitered as became a skilful General. With every disposition to praise and acknowledge the 'bravery, of the Noble bird ; he could not consent to vote Thanks to him. Lord CASTLEREAGH explained. , General CEA:FORD spoke in support of the mo;- tion, and expieiSed himself happy in having it in his power to offer a tribute of applause to one of the most glorions.feats which ever graced the history military achievements, and to gi% e the humble mead of his praise to 'a great, distinguished, and glorious'! brother officer. Gzinerai STEWART wiihed to mako A.tew re:carkE on;one or two points, touching the condua of (1)0 battle of Talavera. Lord 'Wellington had prjec,ted an attack on the army of Vidor on the 23d, whic.hi 'had it been acceded to by General Cuesta, must have terminated in the 'annihilation of that corps.—, - On the 2+4 Visor retreated, and was pursued by General Cuesta as far as Olala. On the 26th the Spanish army retreated to the, left bank of, the .6.1 r berche, and then it was that the dispositions madP by Lind Wellington not only secured the subse quent glorious Mctory to 7 hiS'tiwti - tpoopS, but pie served the Spanish arrny., It had been observed ihattord Wellington did not expect the battle the first instance lie 'did nut : how could he* , whet Victor had retreated ? 'lt was the Spanish army brought then black upon him,,end then his presenc.' of tuind arid personal conduct furnished :1 barrier to every difficulty. H. could only Say, that he was -every where during the tight, and always in the hottest action ; auti' in expressing his approbation of the motion, 'he Was sure he but expressed what was rile generalifeelitig.of the army: Mr. WINDHAM, notVtrithstauding all that he had heard in that House that night,'still could not, divest hiniselfOrtliOSe feelings 'whiCh the first accounts: of this action had impressed upon his mind ; hoc. could he help still thinking it worthy the honour, • proposed, This. was his first, feeling on the sub ject, and on such a question he was sure first- feel.' togs were best : it might be other wise with thoughts—second thoughts Might be best, but at lea.if in' this instance, firsCreelings were be4t. What w`ere the general feelings. of the whole nation, whet' the tidings of the battle were Matle known ? Th,le was mit a loyal heart, that did •nol rejoice 'at this act cession to . our Military glory.; and when he weighed and .analysed what had .fallen • from several Hon.: • Members on that night, the debate seemed to hittt , miliiary special pleading-. A qu ( :, s ti on bdd b e e" suggested whether was Vietory ? It reminded him of a wag, who was once 'asked, after he had been boxing; who beat'? andreplied, " why L. beat him and he beat me ; but cgate in ,first.,", So it Was in the present case. The French attacked our . troops we did not go' to theM, -they came to us ; -but they gaVe in first. That Holiseyad given their Th.nks for an attack on, a Sugai tsiand ; he-preferred the vic tory of Talavera to a whole Archipelago of Sugar Islands. The House had heard a language that night wiiith-fodr years ago would have- been spurned - at. What was then then the national cbntempt for our military efforts ?,.wliat was the national pride in the • 6nsciollsbess of military prowess ? We regr e t that want of room prevents us front entering' inure hilly into the speech of .the Right Hon. Gentleman-. H 6 toricluded2by supporting the motioti. - Mr. LITTLEToN and Mr. C. Aimms supported the original motion. . Gen. MATTHEW also warmly supported the vote of thankS to - the Noble Lord, of whoie conduft he 'spoke in the highest terms; comparing him to Mar ., . shtil Lasnes. . . General TAttfirroN' explamed. Mr. PONSONBY opposed the vote ofthankk, on .that ground that Lord. Wellington had haZarded the Bri.l - army without a suffiCierit cause; :and that the benefit which he ,had:a right to expea'fron) the at:L . . tion.was not equal to the risk that he incurred iii fighting it. Mr. CANNING felt it impossible to conceive why his assent 'to the : motion should be withheld. Oa no other provocation than , that Government had called on the House . to speak ,the .sentitn4i - its of . / gratitude which warmed almost every heart, in. the country ; the ibuse W4s required, throneh the medium of the, proposed amendment, to cen sure the . Noble" Ldtd whose conduct was the sub j,e6t of discussion, and to pronounce hint, stead' of the exalter of the' , honour of this cOun-,. try, the wanton waster Of her best blood. He la- . inented the loss , that had taken place in th e b a ttle of Talavera as much as any man ; 'but war was a-- game that could not l.e played - without. It had'been said that the House had been too prodigal o f th e ir approbation in recent times. ' , We lived in an ag e - go full of splendid achievethents, that it was feared the spring of honour might be dried up. This was in deed kr. sotn,ce of high exultation, and One in which he trusted the country would long have t 4.)" in dulge. Lord FOLKSTONI: supported the Am.endin:..nr. . . _ , Sir: T. 'I . URTON was anxious that. the. Origi-. nal 'Motion should be acceded to as unanimously it Possible. . • The Gallery was then cleared ; but we understood that the Amendment waq negatived, s ad t h e 06, 2, 1.. nal Motion carried without a ,division.' Adjourned at Two o'Clockthis THE •EXPEDITIOiV TO • THE SCHELDT. ADDITIONAL PAPERS. PRESENTED TO BOTH HOUSES OF PARLIAMENT YESTERDAY. EVAC.UATI ON. Letter from Sir R. STR A CHAN to Lord MU LGR A YE, dated St. Domingo, off Borslen, 13th Sept. 1809. MY LORD-I have this moment received your' Lordship's letter of the 11th, and as the Reindeer is, under weigh, I have scarcely time to thank you for its . contents. I am very anxious, I do assure your. Lordship, to see you for the pUrpose•of communi-: eating matters Connectedt with this Island ; which, • in my. opinion, ought not to be given up. It is a post of great iMpottance as a,naval station, a , d. al6O with a view to future operations on the Continent ; particulAly as. it is not certain Austria has made peace wan France. This Isltntl, • under popnlaC Government (by popular, I mean plea Sing to the inhabitclits . ,' by placing the supetiOr ones in autho rity, and &Veining by their own laws) ; may be prt;-- (Waive of great advantages to England, .in regard to trade with the Continent, similar to that established at 'Heligoland: Ido not apprehend it-is snore un healthy than any of the low parts of Kent; .but the troops being at present,generally infettett, ouing to the nature of, the sera ice to which they have' been exposed, it . may tie proper they should he .with-• urawd, and replaced with ‘otly, , ,r regiments. The brig kA hich we ku buibling will be ready in a week; the fripte Vcry soon ; and the ship of the line is. • taLing to pieces. There is a quantit ) of useful ship timber here. I )beg apitt to repeat my hopes, that this Island z l'ay be retain , I , ll the opiniot utlence is nom likely to tlia I shall remaii Person with naval, to cc have the bona Right. Hon. I . az e cr t dh i fl e e s r er etr f ane r t,i o fo i n wol al hoe S i tcvd i :, tn St. Domin go proposition fi " The d e f t princip a lly forc e which v t o it, then I.r. 'Nate t o th e d dtio ns , ace, J 1 Letter from an Si OnerS of the t s ? You, to le' `ner in_ the p Oland of Wa of the 13th Made a the 3 ' o ll had i n ( 1 he; Produced , tl state yo f naval force t T'e Scheldt, ec liired t o v 4 es siOn*of tiV Rear-Admin Li ter froth Sii tte r of 11; yes le iiu ns of n 1.4 tY to l et 3 prop„ tlie ..nq of W il ie l3 thof tlt -1),.t/tplatic 4 ,a Conti no 4 N Pinion in ‘\: sat Y tO 4 14 differ that "Icherh. 44 11 , r ePlY, r ea : c) YOU- . 1 en !0 ex "tize"le Cot-) nsiderable ' 4B - the A cease 01pC Dren t att edration: at kitig "vi er e f A s ore o f c luadr o , t tl hat w hi, .:Ps of th e russession. 1. W . Cra